02/23/2012

To say that the last two weeks, and, for all intents and purpose, the last few months, have been a roller-coaster would be an understatement of epic proportions. All the candidates have learned things about themselves that they didn't know before, but more importantly, Georgetown has learned a little something about itself that it may not have known: this campus wants to be heard.

At lunchtime today, GUSA Executive election turn-out was already at an all-time high. Since the ballot opened at about 10:15 last night, this election has been on a record-setting pace for a couple of reasons. There are more tickets this year than any other in recent memory, and the ideas that have been put forth are both basic yet necessary, both innovative yet accomplishable, and both fun yet beneficial. And I'm sure that the entire Georgetown population will be relieved when this is over because of the exhaustive knocking and rampant enthusiasm for GUSA that has permeated campus.

But the energy cannot end here. Regardless of the outcome, this turn-out will yield a mandate that is the voice of the majority of the whole student body. For the first time, a majority of Georgetown students are participating in their student government. This is an opportunity that the next Executive cannot let slide.

If you're reading this post, then you probably care, and you've, even more likely, already voted. That's fine, great even. As long you've participated, you've done your part to make Georgetown a better place. And no matter who wins, whether it's Lauren and me or not, hopefully we can all work together to make Georgetown the place that we know it can become.

02/22/2012

After fourteen days of campaigning, you’ve hopefully had a chance to learn more about John Morris & Lauren Weber, their experience and their ideas. And now the ballot is out. You can find it here.

John & Lauren are simply the best candidates, combining John’s GUSA experience and Lauren’s leadership at The Hoya and other groups on campus. They also have the best vision for Capturing Your Ideal Georgetown, including expanding SafeRides, advancing the Student Advocacy Office and creating a GUSA Lecture Fellows series as just a few of their proposals.

The ballot is available here. We hope you’ll give John & Lauren you're #1 but if you are supporting another candidate, we hope you will make John & Lauren your second choice.

All right team, so it's the last day of the election season. We've put in the time, from occupying Red Square to knocking on doors and making that Hoya Saxa that was seen around town. Now it's time to rally the vote for John & Lauren.

It's been a crazy two weeks, and while the lack of sleep may make this a bit hazy as I write it, I am not lying when I say I've loved every minute of it. From meeting new Hoya faces to learning about everyone's great ideas to reshape GUSA and in turn, the Hilltop, I've been lucky enough to hear what you all have to say.

And I strongly believe that John and I can be the ones to get GUSA up to your standards in this upcoming year. John Morris and I ran on a platform that strengthens GUSA's outreach, refocuses its attention on students, and opens up endless opportunities for you all. At the end of the day, GUSA is your student association. We want YOU to have the chance to capture your ideal Georgetown, and we think we're the best ticket to do so.

From John's insider experience as deputy chief of staff to my comprehensive outside perspective as a former executive editor for The Hoya, we know we have the insider-outsider experience to accomplish our goals and serve you all to the best of our ability.

At the end of the day, John and I love this Hilltop. Georgetown is our home, and we'd like to make it better for the next generation of Hoyas. So here's to you all, fellow Hoyas. Vote for John & Lauren so we can capture your ideal Georgetown.

02/20/2012

The first thing you notice when you see the Hoya Saxa message is that this sign isn’t about John or Lauren. It’s about Georgetown.

And that’s why they are running. At basketball games, we chant “We Are Georgetown.” It’s not about one of us or some of us; it’s about all of us. And that’s the spirit that John & Lauren will bring to GUSA.

This campaign shouldn’t be about our differences. It should be about this school and its future. We hope you’ll check out this blog and our website to learn more about John & Lauren’s plans to bring the Hilltop together and move Georgetown forward.

02/16/2012

We’ve been sharing our ideas throughout this campaign. Today, we go in depth to talk about our plans to reach out to incoming freshmen over the internet:

Project Move-In was a great initiative that will be continued, but GUSA should also take the lead in reaching out to freshman before they even get to the Hilltop.

By teaming up with campus media outlets like The Hoya and The Voice as well as student welcome groups like New Student Orientation, preorientation programs, and the Georgetown Admissions Ambassadors Program, (spell these out, I forgot what they stand for) GUSA can create a single website where relevant, useful information can be easily accessed by incoming freshman.

John & Lauren believe that freshman are bombarded with great information when they get to Georgetown, like The Hoya’s New Student Guide to the Hilltop and Vox Populi’s breakdown of campus culture in the weeks leading up to a return. Yet over the summer, when many are trolling through their favorite Hoya Saxa Facebook page or stalking CHARMS pages, these resources are not at their fingertips.

But by putting all this information on one simple accessible site, with details on how to pick classes, an NSO schedule of events, preorientation applications, an official Facebook page link, and a question and answer portion that would be moderated by GAAP, we can shape a more enriching pre-freshman experience.

Such outreach would also help strengthen GUSA, since students would see what the Student Association does for them before they even reach the Front Gates.

By taking existing resources and repackaging them in an accessible and user-friendly way, John & Lauren believe they can help freshman hit the ground running when they get to Georgetown, allowing them to make the Hilltop their home.

02/12/2012

In today's blog installment, learn more about John and Lauren's plans to reform and streamline the room reservation system:

If you’ve ever tried reserving a room for an event at Georgetown, you know that the reservation system is a nightmare.

With the Office for Campus Activity Facilities (OCAF), Lauinger Library and the ICC each having their own programs for student leaders to reserve space, the process is mired in red tape and confusion. Where do I go to book each space? Is it OCAF, is it the President’s office? The confusion only leads to time lost and a headache for all involved.

Room numbers aren’t available through the booking systems, and sometimes administrators and other groups overbook space to reserve the room just in case – and then never use it.

Clearly, this situation is unsustainable. But GUSA can and should take the lead in streamlining the system, making it easier for you.

John and Lauren envision a new centralized website, with all the booking mechanisms easily accessible. Room capacity numbers, costs, availability, and a how-to guide – all on one centralized website.

Furthermore, John and Lauren would like to spend some of their budget to supplement the ever high cost of room reservation. It is entirely counterintuitive that students have to pay for space, and they hope to work toward alleviating some of the costly burden.

We all want to be able to reserve a room without the run around headache. With John and Lauren at the helm, we can make that happen.

02/11/2012

Throughout this campaign we’re going to be sharing more about our platform or ourselves on our blog. Today, we’re talking about our plan to expand SafeRides:

Over the past few semesters, some GUSA Executive and Senator members have driven SafeRides vans on Friday nights, providing a valuable service to Georgetown students who need a safe way of getting around the neighborhood at night.

But this service opportunity shouldn’t just be open to GUSA officials. John and Lauren want to expand this program to any student who wants to complete the proper training with DPS to qualify to drive. And to make the program even more accessible, we will look into how we can make driving the vans a work-study job.

To guarantee that we have enough drivers, GUSA should reach out to on-campus student groups to get a commitment to provide drivers at least one weekend night a month. Similar to the “25 days of service” model, we’d love to have 25 days of SafeRides.

But John and Lauren don’t just want to focus on student drivers. We’ve included money in our budget to purchase another van for the fleet, in order to speed up response time, preventing hassle and, potentially, a dangerous walk.

We also plan on spearheading a video series of student experiences in SafeRides and continuing the "Snack Cab" program to increase knowledge about — and usage of — this valuable resource.

Another goal is to buy small, inexpensive speaker systems for the old vans, to make it more enticing for students to give up their Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights to drive — and for riders to have a better in-van experience — in order to make sure everyone makes it home safe.

SafeRides is a program that works and with the few small changes John and Lauren have in mind, it can work even better.

02/09/2012

Throughout this campaign we’re going to be sharing more about our platform or ourselves on our blog. Today, we’re talking about our plan to improve neighborhood relations:

The Campus Plan debate — which continues after a postponement by the Zoning Commission on Feb. 9 — has shown that town-gown relations on the Hilltop are at or near an all-time low. And while sometimes students are rightly fed up with the neighbors, we all suffer from discord in our backyard.

Building better relations with Georgetown and Burleith residents is good for everyone. Fewer SNAPS calls, less worry among students and fewer headaches for the University in dealing with the Campus Plan are just a few of the benefits that will come from improving town-gown relations.

And while we can’t solve every problem or reset the relationship overnight, John and Lauren think a common-sense set of initiatives would make an immediate impact on neighborhood relations.

Why not show the neighbors who Georgetown students really are? Inviting neighbors to join us for GUGS burgers off Red Square on Fridays would go a long way to showing that Hoyas really are good neighbors. And what Georgetown resident wouldn’t enjoy Cherry Tree Massacre or Rangila?

Another way to make life easier for everyone is to create an interactive forum to link students and neighbors so that loud parties don’t turn into police reports. And GUSA is the perfect organization to spearhead both of these initiatives.

We’ve been here since 1789, and the Campus Plan debate shows the neighbors aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. The only choice is to work together. John and Lauren will have GUSA take the lead in making sure students and neighbors find common ground to build a better neighborhood.